Chapter 44: The Seal Barrier Formed by Heaven, Earth, and Man - Coeus's Handiwork

At the dawn of the Mythic World, there were only four basic elements: earth, water, fire, and wind. Among these, the fire element absorbed various divine powers, transforming into countless divine flames. The Flame of the Sun is one such flame, representing the sun's divine fire capable of burning everything with its scorching heat.

Hades faced the combined assault of Perseus and Atlas, two Titan Chief Gods who excelled in both strength and skill. As Helios launched his attack, Hades casually raised his hand. Beneath this calm gesture, a dark purple flame erupted from his palm.

The two fiercely burning divine flames collided. With the addition of endless divine power, they clashed continuously, yet neither side could overpower the other. This was Hades's divine flame, the Flame of the Underworld, symbolizing the underworld's power and specialized in burning souls.

"The Flame of the Underworld..." Helios muttered thoughtfully. "As expected, Hades has mastered this divine flame. But! Hades, fighting against three of us, you're at a disadvantage from the start. Besides, we didn't come here to defeat you."

"Atlas, Perseus," Helios called out loudly, calculating the time. "It's time!"

The two Titan Gods, who had been fiercely attacking, immediately ceased their actions and retreated without hesitation. However, despite their swift retreat, the dark purple chains quickly followed. Hades, not one to remain on the defensive, sent the chains, formed from the dark stars, to wrap around Atlas and Perseus. As the two felt their divine powers wane and their laws being sealed, their expressions changed. They wanted to resist, but it seemed too late.

Just as the two were about to be completely sealed by the chains, a figure descended from the sky, creating a barrier that kept the chains at bay. The chains of the dark stars gradually dissipated, but Atlas and Perseus looked grim.

"The law of sealing!" Atlas said gravely. "I never expected that even with our vigilance, a moment's lapse would give Hades the chance."

"Lord Coeus was right!" Perseus's voice rumbled like flowing lava. "The law inherent in the dark stars is the law of sealing. If one is not careful and gets sealed by them, it's a big trouble."

Clearly, Helios, Atlas, and Perseus were not acting on impulse. They had meticulously prepared to delay Hades. After all, with Hades's Cloak of Invisibility, they couldn't stop him from escaping if he truly wanted to. And even with their combined might, it wasn't certain they could defeat Hades outright. 

Their main goal was to stall for time. Once the sealing barrier was in place, Hades would be unable to leave. This confidence came from their trust in Coeus, the God of Black Thunder and the wisest among the Twelve Titan Gods, known as the Enlightened One.

Yes, all of the preparations at this moment were orchestrated by Coeus, one of the Twelve Titan Gods, whose title as the Enlightened One was well-earned. He had planned everything meticulously to seal Hades here.

Why?

No one knew how powerful Hades could become if he continued to grow. If left unchecked, he could become a significant threat. Hence, Coeus chose this moment to attempt sealing Hades.

Why only seal him? This task fell to Iapetus, not Coeus. To interfere further by killing Hades would overstep his role, potentially offending Iapetus.

At this moment, within the seal, Hades watched calmly as three massive stone slabs descended from the sky. Each slab bore a single divine character: Heaven, Earth, and Man. The slabs formed a perfect seal with no attack, defense, or illusion—a flawless barrier designed solely for sealing.

"Seal Barrier," Hades murmured, surveying his surroundings. "Among the Twelve Titan Gods, only the Enlightened One, Coeus, could achieve this."

Understanding this, Hades sent out waves of laws against the seal formed by Heaven, Earth, and Man. Yet, the perfect trinity of the seal easily neutralized his attempts.

Hades contemplated, "The combination of Heaven, Earth, and Man creates a seamless sealing barrier. Unless I can surpass Coeus's divine power, breaking it seems nearly impossible."

This was the special nature of the barrier. It wasn't meant to harm or defend but simply to confine. It's akin to building a wall around you—simple but effective.

To break it, one could find and exploit a flaw within the cycle of Heaven, Earth, and Man. That's the first method.

Alternatively, one could use overwhelming divine power to shatter the barrier, surpassing the power Coeus used to create it. That's the simplest method.

Aside from these two methods, breaking the barrier seemed nearly impossible. After various tests using divine power and laws yielded no results, Hades waited silently, lost in thought.

Hades whispered softly, "Such divine power, could it be..."

"Ga-ga-ga~~~"

Once more, the dark stars transformed into chains, piercing through the barrier. Yet, in the next moment, the circulating divine laws seemed to anticipate this and repelled the chains with a forceful rejection.

Before the sealing law could take effect, it pushed the chains out, rendering the sealing law ineffective. However, this was enough for Hades. The fact that the chains could penetrate the barrier was a clue.

Realizing this, Hades ceased his attempts to break the seal and turned inward, stepping into the underworld. In truth, if Hades had established a door to the underworld, he could have simply left through it. 

This seal would then be entirely meaningless.

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